What Trump’s decision means for Iran

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He claimed: “The United States does not make empty threats… The Iranian regime has funded its long reign of chaos and terror by plundering the wealth of its own people. No action taken by the regime has been more dangerous than its pursuit of nuclear weapons and the means of delivering them. In fact, the deal allowed Iran to continue enriching uranium and, over time, reach the brink of a nuclear breakout. The deal lifted crippling economic sanctions on our end in exchange for very weak limits on the regime’s nuclear activity and no limits at all on its other maligned behavior, including sinister activities in Syria, Yemen, and other places all around the world. In other words, at the point when the United States had maximum leverage, this disastrous deal gave this regime—and it’s a regime of great terror—many billions of dollars, some of it in actual cash. A great embarrassment …”

He stands with the people of Iran.

“I want to deliver a message to the long-suffering people of Iran: The people of America stand with you. It has now been almost 40 years since this dictatorship seized power and took a proud nation hostage. Most of Iran’s 80 million citizens have sadly never known an Iran that prospered in peace with its neighbors and commanded the admiration of the world. But the future of Iran belongs to its people. They are the rightful heirs to a rich culture and ancient land, and they deserve a nation that does justice to their dreams, honor to their history and glory to their god… But the fact is they are going to want to make a new and lasting deal, one that benefits all of Iran and the Iranian people. When they do, I am ready, willing, and able. Great things can happen for Iran, and great things can happen for the peace and stability that we all want in the Middle East. There has been enough suffering, death, and destruction. Let it end now.”

That presidential statement echo comments were given by Trump’s new attorney, Rudy Giuliani, who attended the National Council of Resistance of Iran’s (NCRI) “Iran Freedom Convention,” over the weekend.

With the US nuclear agreement toast and peace talks on the horizon in the Koreas, Iran’s response to Trump’s decision to foreclose on the Islamic Republic was direct and angry.

Iran’s President Rouhani said, “It is possible that we will face some problems for two or three months, but we will pass through this.” The embattled president also insisted his country wants to continue “working with the world and constructive engagement with the world.” But once President Trump made his announcement the hardline regime said American was “breaking the deal, and it will lead to historic regret.”

Of course, former President Obama was not joyful.

“The reality is clear. The JCPOA is working – that is a view shared by our European allies, independent experts, and the current US Secretary of Defense. The JCPOA is in America’s interest – it has significantly rolled back Iran’s nuclear program,” the former president said in a Facebook statement. “That is why today’s announcement is so misguided. Walking away from the JCPOA turns our back on America’s closest allies and an agreement that our country’s leading diplomats, scientists, and intelligence professionals negotiated. In a democracy, there will always be changes in policies and priorities from one Administration to the next. But the consistent flouting of agreements that our country is a party to risks eroding America’s credibility, and puts us at odds with the world’s major powers. And the JCPOA is a model for what diplomacy can accomplish – its inspections and verification regime is precisely what the United States should be working to put in place with North Korea. Indeed, at a time when we are all rooting for diplomacy with North Korea to succeed, walking away from the JCPOA risks losing a deal that accomplishes – with Iran – the very outcome that we are pursuing with the North Koreans.”

Speaking of the North Koreans, President Trump announced that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was headed back to the DPRK for the second round of peace talks and putting the finishing touches on a meeting between the two leaders.

Nevertheless, a mixed review from regime leaders said the Islamic rulers are likely to continue with the Obama deal hoping the Trans-Atlantic European Union and other regional partners would continue to do business with the hardline regime.

However, the US Treasury Department countered that prospect by announcing there would be “certain 90-day and 180-day wind-down periods… and at the end of those periods, the sanctions will be in full effect.”

Last month, Army Gen. Joseph Votel, Commander, US Central Command told the Senate Armed Services Committee that the Iran deal “addresses one of the principal threats that we deal with from Iran. If the deal goes away… then we will have to have another way to deal with their nuclear weapons program.”

But does this mean war?

According to Heshmet Alvi, a Middle East activist and proponent of regime change, “Iran’s economic decline are rooted in two spectacles. Unbridled ‘corruption’ and ‘mismanagement’ are the groomed descriptions of plundering people’s belongings in broad daylight.”

He explained, “Iran’s Revolutionary Guard (IRGC) now has a firm grip over key industries and businesses, including a long list of ports in Iran’s southern coastlines where billions of goods are imported without any taxes. This has resulted in a large number of production lines to fail. Second, the Iranian regime’s forty-year ‘Exporting Revolution’ motto comes with a cost, and the population has been paying the price. The fact that Bashar Assad remains in power in Syria, the Lebanese Hezbollah continues to wreak havoc, and Houthi militias continue to make life a living hell in Yemen are all due to the financial support provided by Iran.”

Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Ed Royce concurred. “The deal does not shut off Iran’s path to a nuclear weapon. It does not allow inspectors ‘anywhere, anytime, 24/7 access.’ It does not stop the regime’s pursuit of intercontinental ballistic missiles. And it gave Tehran an infusion of cash to support more of its terrorist activities around the world.”

The committee leader vowed to work with the Trump administration to rework the “worst deal ever.” Royce explained; “The Obama administration has put us in a tough spot. Roughly $100 billion was given to Iran. At least $1.7 billion of that was an apparent cash ransom payment, stacked on pallets and flown – against the advice of the Justice Department and other officials – to the Iranian regime. Much of this has likely found its way into the hands of the Revolutionary Guard Corps. Tearing up the nuclear deal will not recover this cash. That toothpaste isn’t going back into the tube. It also won’t help galvanize our allies into addressing Iran’s dangerous activities that threaten us all. … Last week’s move by Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu to unveil Iran’s secret nuclear-weapons archive reminds us all what is at stake. Despite its repeated denials, Iran had a comprehensive program to design, test and build a nuclear weapon.”

The Republican also suggested they were interested in working with the EU to close the Iran sanction gap relief. “We should be able to get an agreement with the Europeans to fix these serious flaws. I understand we’ve made encouraging progress in recent weeks,” he concluded. “If we don’t have an agreement today, let’s double down on diplomacy and get a deal in the weeks ahead. The Europeans need to get to ‘yes.’”

In related news, John Kerry, the Obama administration architect of the Iran deal slammed President Trump’s decision to exit the Iran nuclear deal and called it irresponsible and one that risks “dragging the world back to the brink.” In a statement, Kerry said, “Today’s announcement weakens our security, breaks America’s word, isolates us from our European allies, puts Israel at greater risk, empowers Iran’s hardliners, and reduces our global leverage to address Tehran’s misbehavior while damaging the ability of future administrations to make international agreements.”

The statement comes amid charges from many Republicans that Obama’s former Secretary of State John Kerry is violating the Logan Act, a law enacted to prevent former government officials from circumventing current administrations. And a charge that tripped up Army Lt. General Mike Flynn. Something that effectively ruined his NSA position with President Trump. While Flynn’s case is in legal limbo, more allegations are leaking fromThe Globe, the paper alleges “Kerry met with Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif multiple times over the last few months. He also met with German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, French President Emmanuel Macron and multiple members of Congress here in the United States.”

The bold move by President Trump will surely find popularity within the protestors hoping to oust the hardline regime before its 40th birthday in February.